In Spring 2010 our team paddlers, testing the prototype Palm Fuse jacket came back to tell us it was going well, really well…. but that it could be better….. How we asked? By adding a pair of pants and making it into a suit they explained.
But that’s not a proper dry suit came our response. Nope, they countered, and some would say the Fuse isn’t a proper dry cag, but we are plenty dry enough and we want freedom and comfort, because that’s how we are paddling.
So we went ahead and made what they asked and created something a bit new – The Spark suit.
“New ways of thinking demand new methods. The Spark suit breaks from the past to meet the needs of today’s paddlers.” – Barney Caulfield, Designer.
” In the Spark freeride suit, I can go for a quick run or charge all day; light weight, flexible cut and easy to wear, looks great too.” – Simon Westgarth, Gene 17 coach and Spark suit idea generator.
” I can coach all day, be in and out of the water and still be dry and warm’ Tom Parker, BCU level 5 coach
“After 4 months of winter, and paddling in almost every condition, count me as an advocate! This thing has far over achieved in every category that a drysuit should.” Andrew Holcombe, Racer, coach and River ambassador
” Crazy good.” – Dave Carroll, Freerider
What’s the difference?
4D cut – articulation
Developed for our premium jacket range this has now extended into the pants and really raises the bar, not only in the way it allows extended articulation in all ranges of movement, but importantly how it keeps construction simple and durable – less seams and fewer seams crossing equals better performance.
Advanced Glideskin neck
Can it be an immersion suit with a neoprene neck? We think so. Smoother, more comfortable and arguably more durable this system has been around for long enough to be proven, its simply that no-one dared adding it to a suit. The ankle system used is also, perfect for warmer conditions and suited for use in other water sports like SUP, kite surf and sailing.
XP 3 layer fabric
Our microporous membrane 3 layer material is highly waterproof, durable yet light and flexible, perfect for garments that require significant articulation, yet rugged enough for all weathers.
TI-Zip® Masterseal zippers
A dry zip that changed what’s possible in immersion suits. The low profile and flexible nature of the Masterseal allows the zip to be attached across curves perfect for a better fit around the back and shoulders. It also requires less maintenance, a bonus for wet paddlers!
Size matters
Along with other suits in our range we have quite literally broadened the size range available. The Spark comes in six sizes, including a new Medium Broad size, allowing paddlers to get optimum fit from a suit that provides optimum flexibility.
Check the full spec here and get to your dealer to try-one yourself.
Start clipped onto your rescue harness and to a static line with everyone else.
On the count of 3 run forwards to the line and, using an underarm throw, hit the Palm banner on the volley ball net
Collect bag and onwards to the overarm throwing target, a lime Amp vest hanging from a tree.
Once target hit, grab bag and forwards to the bowling arm station, thrown kneeing down behind the line and the target is the cockpit of a new Mamba.
Giving 110% ran back to the starting line, take out 2 hand full’s of rope and again hit the target.
With rope fully deployed, recoil using small bunny ears (totally mission critical), and throw again.
Repack bag, bag upside down above head.
The Prizes:
Amp Vest, Luna Jacket, Palm safety slings, 18 & 12m throw bags and Palm t-shirts.
The Winners:
Sam (NZ) & Dan (GB) for the men, Frederica (I) and Lisa (GB) for the ladies.
The Serious Part.
With all that fun over (for now), there’s a serious part to this chaos. You need to practice throwing your line accurately, because when you need it, it’ll really matter. I would encourage you to get it right every time but also practice the recoiled throw.
The whole Gene17 Val Sesia River festival was a complete hoot. Who doesn’t love bedrock granite? Who doesn’t like quality cheese, coffee and wine? Same time next year?
Next weekend is the Val Selesia festival and along with fellow Palm paddler Dave Carrol, I will be running the Palm Throwbag Olympics (Thursday and Friday evenings) so I figured it would be good time to share some of the top tips I regularly teach on white water safety and rescue courses ready for the competition.
1. Plan. Using a throwbag is usually proactive, as in you have time to plan where and how you’ll be using it rather than reactive (jumping out your boat as someone swims passed?). Use this time to think about where a paddler is likely to swim, and whether there is an eddy to swing them into.
2. Throw. Too much emphasis is put on the throw itself, as long as it reaches the swimmer, no problem! Roughly I use underarm when I want accuracy, an overarm when I’m throwing down from a cliff or I want the swimmer to feel the rope hit them and a wide bowling action for distance, like putting a rope across a river.
3. Belay. Key for me is managing the forces just as the rope goes tight. The load is same for you on the bank as it is for the person in the water. It doesn’t matter how strong you are, your grip on the rope or the ground if the person in the water is tired, they won’t be able to hold on. You, as the rescuer, must anticipate the force and brake appropriately. The easiest way of doing this to move downriver and away from the river, space you planned for in step 1. It is possible to let rope out or use a body belay but again doesn’t matter how you brake someone in the water as long as you do, allowing you to rescue any sized person. The bigger they are, the stronger the water, the more braking distance need.
Next Month’s Dispatch will look at tactics for bigger water paddling as many of us head away to France and Austria for some summer sun.
Chris Eastabrook offers year round safety and rescue courses and has Palm PFDs, throwbags and other goodies available to try out on the standard and advanced courses. Click here for www.chriseastabrookcoaching.com.
The photos for this blog came from David Fairweather, check out www.davidfairweather.net for more photos and stories. Thanks Dave, Thave.
What a corker of a weekend the Team has just had in Nottingham. Firstly Rosie presented us all with a cardboard box full of luscious pink cags from Palm! Not only were we wonderfully warm and dry on the water thanks to Palm’s Swirl Cag, we were also finally all MATCHING!!!! Except for Fran’s Blue helmet but we will have to let her off there.
So with our Palm Amaris Pants, Helix Play Vests (great low profile for racing) and New Swirl Cags we set out on a weekend full of promise, and it did not disappoint. We were all feeling great from the high protein nutritional eating plan made for us from our previous training weekend spent with Ed Tooley, and psyched to be with each other again. This time we had top coach Dave Brown coming to observe us and see whether he might want to be our coach. We started off with our beastly warm up set by Nezza -’kiss my rubber’-Blue which included loads of running (with the buggy!), stretches coordinated by our unofficial warm up secretary Rosie, then finished off with some hill sprints! Then it was time to get on the water. Over the weekend we did both flat and white water training focusing mainly on slalom and sprint. Dave’s inputs had a brilliant effect and we finished each of the two days all having learned something and taken something on board to work on later. It was really helpful having ‘eyes on the bank’ to really see what was going on, as being a group of ladies, when it comes to going through what worked and what didn’t…well we do love to talk!
Despite the water quality being pretty grim over the weekend we were all on a high at the end because Dave said that he would love to come on board and be our coach – although he is pretty intimidated by our shoulders apparently – so in the build up to the Europeans in August/September we are getting very excited about what this collaboration could mean for our rankings and looking more long term towards the Worlds in NZ next year we can hardly wait!! Thanks Palm for making us look so professional and keeping us so dry, and thanks to Dave Brown for making sure we truely ached after Sunday.
Its UK National Go Canoeing week and chance to show how much you love the sport – so get out there and take part.
National Go Canoeing Week marks the launch of Go Canoeing, a national campaign supported by Canoe England and companies including Palm to encourage and inspire more people to go canoeing more regularly.
So everyone of us that loves paddling should use this week to tell others. To give you some encouragement simply post a picture of you paddling on our Facebook walland you’re in with a chance to win a bag of Palm goodies for sharing your experaince. In fact why not share it with others and spread the message!
To win, simply take a snap of you or your paddling friends and post on our wall. Tell us who, where and when it was (between 6th and 15th of April) and let everyone know why the paddling was so great! We’ll choose the one we feel best represents the spirit of Go Canoeing and announce a winner on Monday the 16th.
Over the past fortnight I’ve had the new Luna PFD for my students to use during their coaching sessions. The reception has been great, but don’t take my word for it!
I am just starting to invest in kayaking kit and what I liked best about the Palm Luna is the front entry option (so I don’t always have to pull it over my head). This makes it easy to whip on and off without necessarily having to remove my helmet. It is kitted out with plenty of pockets and while I initially found it a tad bulky at the front when compared with what I am used to, the large padded pocket settled down with use. A piece of kit I would seriously consider investing in.Gemma, London
I didn’t even know they made kayaking kit for girls, until now I thought it was all unisex shapes. It’s pretty inspiring to know that companies have thought about woman in sport and it actually feels awesome to wear. Marissa, North Wales.
It’s really comfy and good because you don’t have to readjust everything each time you put it on because of the clips. I’m looking for a rescue PFD because I’m becoming a River Leader at my club and the Luna will help me carry all my kit and be confident on the river. Vicky, Birmingham. Photo is of Jess also sporting the Plum coloured Luna.
Available to try on at your nearest Palm dealer now!
As winter shifts to spring here in the southeast United States the paddling season continues to be a good one. Even though the weather is starting to warm up its still drysuit season and I expect many more days in my Spark before summer truly hits. This suit has been an amazing surprise for me over the winter and I am now a convert to its comfort, versatility, and quality.
I will be honest when I received my Spark suit back in late October as a part of Palms testing program I was a little skeptical. I mean the purpose of a drysuit is to be dry right? I just couldn’t see how a neoprene neck gasket would do the trick. However after 4 months of winter and paddling in almost every condition count me as an advocate! This thing has far over achieved in every category that a drysuit should.
The best thing about the Spark is its comfort. The cut makes this the most comfortable drysuit I’ve ever worn. This translates to exceptional ease of movement both on and off the water, especially in the arms and torso area. All that space makes this suit a freestyle kayakers dream, you can twist and contort all you want! It doesn’t stop there, the light but durable choice of fabric only adds to the comfort.
Now comfort is all fine and good whether you’re a freestyler or a river runner but the real question is: does it keep you warm enough?
Bryan Knight putting the Spark through its paces on the Linville Gorge.
The answer absolutely yes. I’ve been kayaking both freestyle and river running in temperatures down to around 40 degree F and am happy to say the Spark performed just fine. The Neoprene neck keeps you comfortable, no restricting the airways, yet still provides a good seal. And with gaskets on the wrist my arms stay nice and dry.
An unexpected benefit of the Spark for me was how perfect it was for a couple of the extreme races here late last fall. Often times the weather is a little chilly but if you wear a full on drysuit you can get really over heated while you’re racing. The Spark’s combo of ease of movement and light fabric made it the perfect suit for racing. Then I was able to stay toasty warm while I watched the rest of the race from the shore!
The Flying Squirrel, right above Gorilla during the Green Race.
All in all I would not hesitate to recommend the Spark to anyone and I look forward to many more great days of kayaking in it! Plus it has a badass color….
Airing it out, post Greenrace celebration at Sunshine.
Myself, Niamh Stack, Dave Hollins and Fran Kohn are two weeks in to our month here in Colombia. We’ve been stunned by how beautiful it is: dramatic moutains covered in thick, lush jungles and huge canyons… a landscape that makes for some very committing sections of river!
So far we’ve paddled some amazing white water, including the big volume Suarez that really got the heart racing and the stunning multiday canyon of the Chicamocha. But the big story so far has been how one river that should have taken us 3 hours ended up taking 4 days – including two gruelling hikes out through the jungle in the dark! (read more about this epic on our trip blog)
The new Mamba is treating me very well and fitted all my multi-day gear plus camera gear in the back no worries. And it handles really well both with and without kit. Its really hot here so my Zenith shortie cag is probably my favourite new piece of kit as it doesn’t let water into my boat but also keeps me cool. That said, with all the jungle hiking we’ve been doing I’ve been pretty glad of how sturdy my Gradient boots are too… you can never underestimate the importance of shoes in the jungle
Surfing a big wave on the Suarez in the Mamba
Getting from one place to another has been an adventure in itself as we are hiring 4x4s and trucks of all shapes and sizes for our shuttles and have been squeezing our kayaks into the luggage compartments of buses for transit between regions.
We spent the past 2 days on buses to reach Villavicencio and paddled a really pretty canyon on the Guayariba today. In the next couple of days we’ll be heading out into the hills to paddle a river that requires hiking for 3 hours, but this time we’ll have mules to carry our kayaks! Pretty excited about that!
Do you know what the ISO test is? How is fabric waterproofness measured? Is breathability in paddling gear really relevant. Will Kevlar® socks really stop a bullet? These questions and more will get answered at the end of January when we bring our head designer Barney Caulfield to the inaugural Gene 17 River Source Symposium.
He’ll be fresh off the back of Palm’s annual design week and no doubt buzzing with new ideas from planning our ranges for 2013, 2014 and beyond. So what better chance to get a unique glimpse into how Palm go about the whole process from product concept to manufacture – oh and its free, yes FREE!
But it’s not just about us showing off how we make stuff – although we’ll have a load of new gear on show Making the right kit choices can massively increase the enjoyment and success of you or your groups days out. Barney will be guiding from inside out so you understand how to get the most from your paddling gear and how to choose the right stuff.
At the tail end of 2011 Welsh kayak anglers Andrew Williams and Gareth Bowen took themsleves north, to Scotland, in search of Skate…… looks like the Aleutain suits were needed in that cold weather.
We had awful weather for the week and only managed to get out onto the Skate grounds for two sessions , each lasting no longer than 3-4 hours.
I reckon I had a bait on the bottom for 2 hours tops but still managed two skate , one of 40lb the other 90lb. The pics of the 90lb fish are poor quality as they are stills taken from a video. Gareth was using my camera and was unfamiliar with it , he thought he was taking stills but was actually just focussing the camera, we sorted this by the second session which is when I had the smaller fish.
I was the only angler who caught any skate , Gareth did hook into a monster which he played for 50 minutes before his line snapped – gutted .
As the target weight of 100lb plus was not reached , I am going back at the end of March for another crack at them , along with Gareth and a few other kayak anglers.
We’ll be keeping track of progress on this as well as more reports on the kayak fishing scene and possibly some event news.
